It bears repeating that the Russo-Ukrainian War is an ongoing conflict. Most films, whether they’re documentary or fiction, are still trying to make sense of the war’s first decade that started in 2014. Vitaly Mansky and Yehven Titarenko’s Eastern Front deals with a bit of that, but thanfully, it juxtposes that contextalization with images from the war during this past year. The documentary lets us hear conversations among men about their family’s opinions about the war while letting us see the front lines. It shows these young men helping out in places where they seek refuge. It also focuses on some of those men as they tell their own complex relationship with Russia. These men rest, deciding on when they return to the front lines.
Eastern Front, or at least parts of it, premiered at Berlin this year. And OVID acquired what seems like a complete feature. By the time this piece is out, that final product is up on their platform. There we can see things like Ukrainian volunteer soldiers both in uniforms and in civvies. During the latter, they do things like helping mend a fence in a rural area far away from the conflict. And there, they and their families discuss the issues I listed above. Most films have depict civilian life and military life as ones that bleed into each other. But while those films show those phases bleed metaphorically, this one switches back and forth between those two which, for the most part, feels effective.
What makes Eastern Front different from other documentaries tackling the war is that it uses conventional techniques but adds twists to them. Instead of interviews, it gives its viewershangout and lunch scenes. Durprisingly, those scenes show that the film is aiming, mostly successfully, for an intimate approach. Titarenko, by the way, works double as both a director and a soldier. He focuses on one of his fellow soldiers who tell his story about his medical journey that partly takes place in, you guessed it, Russia. Both he and Titarenko tell this story with layers. The subtext of it is that yes, their neighbour does have the medical advancements that cure some of their citizens. And yes, that neighbour is a colonizing bully.
There are two things that hinder Eastern Front as a ‘satisfying’ documentary. The first is what way it appraches the Nazi question. It does this by showing the Russian tanks that have the Z symbol on it, stating that there are Nazis within the occupying Russian force. The outdoor table then discuss Russia’s accusation of the Nazis within the Ukrainian army. And in fairness, not everyone will be happy regardless of what these soldiers say. The second is the way the documentary depicts animals. Ones that find themselves in the exurbs or rural areas close to the front lines. Some of those scene do feel exploitative. But the film chalks it up to how war turns humans into animals, which feels like an acceptable compromise.
Watch Eastern Front on OVID.
- Rated: NR
- Genre: Documentary
- Release Date: 7/14/2023
- Directed by: Vitaly Mansky, Yevhen Titarenko
- Produced by: Filip Remunda, Natalia Manskaya, Vít Klusák
- Studio: Braha Production Company, Current Time TV, Hypermarket Film, Studio Vertov